A Thousand Miles
by dutchtulips
Summary: movie-based. Peter walked away from MJ the first time, but the second time she refuses to let him do it again.


SD ~ Stan Lee, Marvel, Columbia. "A Thousand Miles" is by Vanessa Carlton. 

AN ~ another spellbinding song for Peter and MJ. Download it! It's the best! ;) 

**A Thousand Miles**

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****-dutchtulips- 

Eight o'clock. Mary Jane was walking home from her shift at the Moondance. It was just starting to get dark, and the hint of a storm was apparent as low rumbling of thunder could be heard in the distance. She wrapped her trenchcoat tightly around her body as a strong breeze flapped through the street. 

As the first drops of rain plunked down on the city and on Mary Jane, she crossed her arms over herself and studied her feet as she shuffled through the street, wanting to beat the storm. Her Moondance shift that day had left her, as it always did, in a lousy mood, and getting soaked from the rain surely didn't seem like a sound way to better it. 

Mary Jane could feel the raindrops coming down quicker now, and so she began to rush up the street and through the crowds of other pedestrians. The thought of hailing a cab came to mind, but Mary Jane knew, as it was practically impossible, that would just cause her to soak faster. Instead, she put her pocketbook over her head and hurried on her way. 

_Making my way downtown_

_Walking fast, faces passed_

_And I'm home bound_

_Staring blankly ahead_

_Just making my way, making my way_

_Through the crowd_

__

__Apparently she'd been too preoccupied trying to outguess the storm_, _because after a few minutes of walking, Mary Jane looked up and realized she'd turned completely into the wrong neighborhood. But it wasn't a complete mystery to the redhead where she was. In fact, it was a neighborhood she was familar with. 

"Peter," she whispered to herself, staring up at his apartment building and identifying his window. The light was on, which caused Mary Jane to wonder if he were there. She had a strong urge to rush up to the door and ring his bell, but not because of the falling rain. It had been a few weeks since that day in the graveyard, since she'd seen him last, and the sad note they'd parted on had cut painfully into Mary Jane's soul. 

_And I need you_

_And I miss you_

_And now I wonder_

Lowering her pocketbook, Mary Jane made a move towards the door and the foyer, but something held her back. As the rain teemed harder, its noise filling her ears, Mary Jane could only keep her eyes glued to Peter's bedroom window, and the light illuminating from it. 

She stood there, still as a statue, as if she were protesting. But in Mary Jane's eyes, she was. She knew more than anything that Peter loved her, too. Even if he hadn't said so. He hadn't needed to. The secret behind his turning her away had deeply perplexed Mary Jane, but the more she thought about it, the more she was sure of what he was hiding. 

"And I'm not leaving," she whispered softly to herself, refusing to take her eyes away from Peter's window. 

_If I could fall into the sky_

_Do you think time would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could just see you_

_Tonight_

__

A shadow moved across the window, causing Mary Jane's breath to catch in her throat. Would he see her? 

But then the figure disappeared again. Mary Jane's shoulders slumped but she remained where she was. Although she was getting more and more drenched, and even beginning to feel a bit silly and futile standing out in front of his house like she was, Mary Jane's heart wouldn't let her move. She had to take a stand. She had to show Peter that he meant more to her than just walking away from her in a cemetary, and that, Mary Jane refused to let him get away so easily. 

_It's always times like these when I think of you_

_And I wonder if you ever think of me_

_'Cause everything's so wrong_

_And I don't belong_

_Living in your precious memories_

__

__"I know you love me, Peter Parker," she heard herself whisper, through the pelting raindrops. "You can't hide that from me. And I know that you're Spider-man, now. You can't hide _that_ from me, either. Anymore."__

__

_'Cause I need you_

_And I miss you_

_And now I wonder_

__

__Peter felt restless. He'd been trying to work on an essay for one of his college classes but he kept getting sidetracked. It was as if there were a sliver under his skin; a strange feeling kept tingling inside of him. But that was nothing new, as it seemed like his spider sense was perpetually going off. Except. . .this time it was. . .different. 

He didn't feel any of the usual emotions that accompanied his precognition, like anxiety or fear. The feeling Peter had now was almost like. . .hope. A beacon fighting its way inside of Peter, desperately wanting to shine brightly and illuminate all of the dark, gloomy places within him. 

Peter listened to the rain beating outside of his window for a moment, trying to concentrate on something else other than the feeling that was nagging him, but it wasn't working. He sighed and slammed his pen against the top of his desk. 

"What is it?" He mumbled to himself, getting up out of his chair and pacing the room. 

After a moment or two, Peter dropped back into his chair, picked up his pen, and tapped it absentmindedly against the notebook on his desk. He sighed again, staring at the same blank sheet he'd been looking out for awhile already. 

Suddenly it hit him all at once. That feeling. . .it wasn't really a 'what.' It was a presence. . .it was a _who._ He jumped up again. 

_If I could fall into the sky_

_Do you think time would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could just see you_

_Tonight_

Every fiber of Mary Jane's being was now completely saturated in rainwater now, after she'd been standing outside in the storm, looking up at Peter's bedroom window, for such long while now. But she barely noticed. All that really mattered to her was the single soul that was dwelling behind the very window she was staring at. 

Mary Jane kept whispering to herself, watching Peter's window, as if she were talking directly to him. "Maybe you can walk away from me, Peter, but I can't walk away from you. Not now. Not ever. And this time I'm not going to let you do that again. Not now. Not ever." 

_And I, I don't want to let you know_

_I, I drown in your memory_

_I, I don't want to let this go_

_I, I don't_

__

And suddenly he was there. It was as if Peter had materialized from nowhere and had appeared at the window, staring down at the drenched redhead standing on the street. He cupped his hands around his eyes to get a closer look, and indeed, it was her. The one and only 'her' in the universe. Mary Jane. 

Despite the raindrops dribbling down her face, she smiled up at him, a reassuring smile, as if to tell him that everything was going to be okay. Peter kept staring down at her, not seeming to know what to do. Mary Jane blinked, blinking water droplets from her long eyelashes, and abruptly as she'd done so, Peter had disappeared from the window. 

He hadn't even given much thought as to what he was doing. But the moment Peter had realized that it was Mary Jane down on the walk, he found himself rushing down the stairs and out the foyer door to meet her. 

_Making my way downtown_

_Walking fast, faces passed_

_And I'm home bound_

_Staring blankly ahead_

_Just making my way, making my way_

_Through the crowd_

"Mary Jane?" He said, stepping out into the pouring rain and letting his eyes drink in the appearance of the woman in front of him. Even when she was completely soaked, Mary Jane Watson was still the most beautiful girl in the world. 

Her eyes stared into his hard, and she didn't say anything. Without thinking, Peter reached out and took her cold hand. Mary Jane's stare, the one she had caught him in right now, was unlike anything else he'd ever felt. It held strong, glued his crystalline blue orbs to hers, and refused to let them be averted. The more he stared into them, Peter could feel Mary Jane's emotions and hear the things she wasn't saying. They felt like daggers when it dawned on him. . .he opened his mouth to speak, but she got there first. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked softly. "If you're afraid to love me because of who you are, why didn't you tell me? Why'd I have to figure it out on my own, Peter?" 

"Because then maybe it'd be easier for you," he mumbled. "You wouldn't have to be in even more danger by knowing too much." 

"Peter, it's _never_ going to be 'easier' for me. I know now that you're Spider-man. It was my choice to pursue that, don't you see?" Mary Jane paused, then smiled gently. "I love you. Nothing can change that. And as long as you still love me, there's no difference in letting me know or not, is there? If you love a person, that's really all there is to it." 

_And I still need you_

_And I still miss you_

_And now I wonder_

"I know, but, Mary Jane, this is much too perilous. I can't allow it," Peter exclaimed, his voice strained. 

She cocked her head to one side. "Pete, listen. I can tell that you feel a lot of blame. I don't know exactly what it's all for, but I can tell that you feel it. If you're afraid of feeling blame of anything that could happen to me, don't. I'll never blame you, because I knew who you were." 

His shoulders slumped and he sighed disdainfully. "I have to do the right thing." 

"And ignoring your heart, letting yourself grow overcome with grief, is it?" 

"Yes. No. I don't know." Peter went back and forth. 

_If I could fall into the sky_

_Do you think time would pass us by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could just see you_

Slowly, Mary Jane reached up and put her arms around Peter's neck. "Do you love me, Peter? I mean, if you do, just say it. There's nothing wrong with letting me know now." 

He was quiet for a long moment and Mary Jane was almost afraid he wasn't going to say anything at all, just walk off and leave her there once again. But if he tried, she wouldn't let him. She deserved to know the truth. 

"I do," he finally whispered. "I do love you very much." 

A soft smiled broke Mary Jane's face. "Then just," she tightened her grip around him, drawing him closer, and rested her head against his shoulder, "let me be near you. Just let me hold you close to me. Tonight." 

"In the pouring rain?" Peter questioned. 

"Yes," came the reply. 

_If I could fall into the sky_

_Do you think time would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could just see you_

And that's how they stood together, in the teeming rain, holding each other as close as possible and never wanting to let go. If they could finally be together in the end, or not, all Mary Jane needed, and needed to know, was to be able to hold Peter Parker close to her, breathe him in deep, and just _know_ that he was there. 

_If I could just hold you_

_Tonight_

**el fin**


End file.
